The 10 Best Sim Games For Your Phone

As soon as developers gave players the chance to build empires and play God, the simulator genre stuck as one of the most addictive modes of all time. Now that most players spend more time with their smartphone screens than their home console setups, some of the best simulator games are now available for your phone. Here are our favorites.

Hackers

Image via iTunes
A multiplayer sim representative of the times, Hackers invites players to develop and secure the most badass online network whilst venturing out on dangerous missions to fight other hackers and drain their bank accounts. Upgrade your system using the spoils of your attacks, including upping your defenses against other hackers who just want the same thing.

True Skate

Image: True Axis
Think of True Skate like a virtual Tech-Deck, as in you have to pull off all tricks and stunts through the trickiness of your fingers. You can grind rails, jump stairs, and defy the force of gravity in a single level, but like Tech Deck, it’s easier said than done.

SimCity BuildIt

Image: EABuildIt is the specially built-out mobile version of the iconic city-building simulator that’s earning some of the same fanfare as the PC original from decades ago. Tap away hours on the train with the everyday frustrations of metropolis management, and enjoy the social component of being able to trade resources with friends.

This War of Mine/

Image: 11 Bit Studios
In this action-adventurer, you are the guide of a group of civilians stranded in the midst of a war. Collect supplies, weapons, and materials to upgrade the base, and complete tasks that will significantly boost their “comfort level,” and even impact the story. You’ll tackle more and more difficult problems as you graduate up the ranks, such as defense and armament allocation, while fighting off scavengers the whole time.

Fallout Shelter

Image: BethesdaFallout Shelter is the mobile version of the hugely popular, console-based, post-apocalyptic FPS, Fallout. Unlike the original, which takes place in a flashy 3D open world, Fallout Shelter puts you in charge of a (2D) vault and an underground society of survivors. Optimizing the number of dwellers in your population and perfecting the coziness of your Vault layout is just half of the compelling struggle.

Real Racing 3

Image: EA
The most realistic racing sim ever created on mobile, this puts most console variations to shame. With gorgeously rendered real-world tracks, several game modes, and a constant stream of updates to over 100 cars, the cherry on top is the built-for-mobile control options; these are way, way easier to use than super-technical racers like, say, Gran Turismo.

The Sandbox: Craft Play Share

Image: The Sandbox
“Sandbox” is a gaming term for a mode of play where the objective is freewheeling creativity, however this game literally takes place in a virtual sandbox. As “Deity Apprentice,” you’ll build a world out of over 200 materials (dirt, lightbulbs) and complete tasks like making mud, lava, or batteries. Populate your weird sandbox world with inhabitants like people, zombies, or robots.

Harvest Moon: Seeds Of Memories

Image via Natsume
Out of all of the farming sims, this 16-bit RPG franchise is possibly the one that did the most to make the genre cool. You’ll spend your time cooking, mining, dating, and growing crops in order to generate money and upgrade your once-abandoned farm. While the mobile version is as premium as the PC or iOS versions, some people are not a fan of the Seeds of Memories edition in general.

Star Traders RPG Elite

Image: Cory TreseStar Traders is a space-trading simulator that offers hours of turn-based strategy exploring over 300 planets in search of intergalactic resources you can sell for a profit. As a player, you can design your own space craft, with more than 60 upgrades, and even live out your Boba Fett fantasies as a bounty hunter hunting targets across the Quadrant.

Rollercoaster Tycoon 3

Image via Roller Coaster TycoonThe third version of the popular Rollercoaster Tycoon series gives you more ways to envision the amusement park of dreams and or nightmares. The mobile version includes a sandbox mode, giving you an unlimited budget to build out hundred-meter towers and other insane attractions.